Past Shows
We recommend ending the 8-hour work day for creative professions.
11.15.17 | Listen, laugh, and learn this week with Tim and John as they address company boycotts based on celebrity, procrastination, gender neutral public announcements, and the lady things of Jimmy Choo. Robbie Rogers retires and Walmart gets dinged on the HRC Corporate Equality Index for 2018. In Shop Talk, the 8-hour work day is explored and while necessary in some professions, it is outdated for creative types. As John said, “I never came up with a great ad campaign sitting behind a desk!” By focusing on putting in the hours at work, rather than putting in the quality of work, we run the risk stifling creativity and imagination.
Oreo Cookie New Flavors—World Wide Debut only on The Focus Group
11.08.17 | Tim and John get their hands on two new, yet to be released, Oreo cookie flavors that will make their debut in 2018! Thank you to listener Chris and Mondelez for giving us the inside scoop. Former Speaker of the House, John Boehner letting down his guard caught John’s eye, Tim recommends skipping a safari for the zoo, and Steve Jobs schools us on how to respond to insults. It’s an embarrassment of riches for our Business Birthdays with three this week! You probably know one as a household name, but how about the other two? Happy Birthday to Milton Bradley, Tom Anderson, and Whip Jones.
Kim Scott, author of “Radical Candor,” shares her thoughts on leadership
11.01.17 | We’re all business. Except when we’re not, was never more revealed than with this week’s Focus Group. The Sea Witch Parade, a man with an unfortunate endowment, discounts at a restaurant based on female assets, and Tim Cook turns 57. Career Coach and author of Radical Candor, Kim Scott, talks leadership and hiring diamond cutters in the old Soviet Union. Enjoy.
4 Expressions to avoid at work and Mystery Oreos
10.25.17 | It’s a Random Sample show. Check-in to the VW Beetle Hotel—if you dare, the ugly sneaker trend, and androphiles are explored. What’s the flavor of the Mystery Oreo? Tim and John seem to think there is an orange tinge while the rest of the crew thinks Fruity Pebbles! Enter to win 50K with Oreo if you get it right. The Focus Group 2017 Listener Survey has launched and we would appreciate your feedback. Shop Talk looks at 4 Expressions to avaoid that make you look clueless at work.
Founder of the Teeth Tomorrow Network Dr. Michael Tischler
10.18.17 | Tim and John speak with Dr. Michael Tischler, owner of Tischler Dental Laboratory as well as the founder of the Teeth Tomorrow Franchise Network. Divine, aka Harris Glenn Milstead, celebrates a business birthday, Apple Pie Oreos get mixed results, and the seven ways to end your day on a good note.
We are on the road from Out & Equal
10.11.17 | Tim and John head to Philadelphia with Volkswagen to attend the 2017 Out & Equal Workplace Advocates Summit. Aside from being the first chance to experience the new VW Tiguan and Atlas SUVs, Tim and John were able to experience first hand how large the Out & Equal conference has grown since their last visit to the summit in Los Angeles. It’s great to see so many Fortune 500 companies in attendance supporting LGBT Equality in the workplace. Not to brag, but VW was one of only four auto manufacturers in attendance, and they stole the show with their display adjacent to the conference entrance and registration. Kudos to the VW Team for being very visible and proud! Our guests this week include VW’s own Machelle Williams and Dave Dunlap, along with the Founder and CEO of Out & Equal, Selisse Berry.
How to handle an uncomfortable work situation
10.04.17 | Tim and John run through their signature segment, The Random Sample—LGBT news from around the USA and sometimes the globe. Russell Simmons is 60, John finds out where the name R2-D2 originated, and Tim wants a Coy dog. Listener Adrian sent us Cookie Butter Oreos to sample—and The Focus Group gives them a 10! Shop Talk looks at some ways to address uncomfortable conversations with co-workers.
Keith Price joins Tim and John and talks about “Curtain Call,” his new podcast
09.27.17 | It’s our first Focus Group Prime Time Special. Comedian and Curtain Call Host Keith Price joins Tim and John to talk about his latest stand-up show and his Fall Broadway Theater picks. John’s Pick that Flick, Tim’s List, and a very special business birthday round out the show. Can you spot the hidden anatomy in some famous cartoons and should a woman be concerned that her boyfriend is on Grindr to “buy weed?”
Criterion Collection President Peter Becker
09.20.17 | If you can still read this the world has yet to end, nurses can’t believe what they see, Sassy Trump reprimands North Korea, Big League Chew is 40, and retailers are closing stores at a record pace. Get your Doomsday Bucket, listen to The Focus Group, and enjoy a Criterion Film tonight. Peter Becker, Criterion Collection President is our guest.
LGBT headlines from around the globe and the Equifax hack
09.13.17 | Tim and John look at LGBT headlines and stories from around the globe, and discuss steps to protect your credit after the Equifax hack. But first, Denny’s craptastic mascot, Milton Hershey’s birthday, and sign language translation fumble.
